Romney took on 'outsider' role at helm of Bay State

As a candidate for governor, Romney vowed to slash the state bureaucracy and now, on the presidential campaign trail, frequently says: "One commentator said that I didn't just go after the sacred cows, I went after the whole herd." After four years, he reduced the payroll of agencies under his direct control by 603 jobs, to 43,979, according to his administration's tally.

By contrast, one of his predecessors, Weld, closed state hospitals, privatized services and slashed about 7,700 jobs in his first term.

Showdown

In his first year as governor, Romney zeroed in on reorganizing higher education by breaking up the five-campus University of Massachusetts system and eliminating the president's office. Major industries in the state objected, and the Legislature rejected the plan, but Romney's efforts ultimately forced out President William M. Bulger, the former state Senate president.

Bulger was a foil from central casting — an erudite and cunning pol from South Boston. A powerful figure during 42 years in state government, Bulger enjoyed support among Democrats on Beacon Hill but little with the general public, weakened as he was by embarrassing disclosures about his contact with his brother, fugitive mobster James "Whitey" Bulger, who was accused of 19 murders.

Before Romney took office, Bulger had invoked his Fifth Amendment privilege before a congressional committee and in June faced a climactic second congressional appearance, testifying under a grant of immunity.

Days before the testimony, however, Attorney General Thomas F. Reilly broke ranks with Democrats and called for Bulger's resignation. The next day, Romney said he might call on the UMass trustees to remove Bulger.

After trustees rebuffed Romney, praising Bulger's job performance, Romney began to frame the conflict in moralistic terms, saying Bulger should be held to "a much higher standard" even if he committed no crime.

Trustees chairwoman Grace K. Fey, Bulger and other backers on the board worried that UMass would suffer retaliation by Romney if Bulger survived. Lawyers negotiated a buyout of the remaining four years on Bulger's contract, and he resigned.

It was a triumph for Romney and his outsider politics.

Romney had no personal relationship with Bulger as he pushed him out the door. William P. Monahan was a different story.

Three weeks after Bulger's exit, Monahan's long personal and political relationship with Romney ended abruptly with a 13-minute phone call.

"He threw me under the bus," Monahan said recently.

Monahan was forced out as chairman of the Civil Service Commission, a month after Romney appointed him. His hasty ouster was engineered by aides who feared the governor would be embarrassed by a Globe story about Monahan's purchase of property from Boston organized crime figures 23 years earlier.